Grant Allows SAGE to Continue Elder Care

Summit-based SAGE Eldercare will continue to offer Guidance Planning and Support, or GPS, services to residents of Mountainside thanks to the generosity of a grant from the Blanche M. and George L. Watts Mountainside Community Foundation, the organization recently announced.

The grant will allow SAGE to assist the community with its eldercare needs, necessary because many of Mountainside's older residents are isolated from the community and living alone with little to no family nearby. 

"Helping people through times of transition is essential to independent living," Julie Reich, acting executive director of SAGE, said in a release. "GPS helps families navigate opportunities to improve the health and general welfare of older adults who are returning home after a rehabilitation stay, are newly diagnosed with a chronic illness, or have suffered a loss."  

According to a release, basic GPS services include a home visit by a Care Navigator, who is a registered nurse specializing in geriatric care. The nurse is able to asses the physical and emotional health of a client as well as the support systems they're currently utilizing. The nurse also reviews medications and creates and emergency information packet, as well as other safety and planning measures.

From a release:

SAGE’s Care Navigators provide the family with a written summary and are able to provide personalized support, care planning and guidance to those who are caring for a loved one, whether the caregiver lives locally or long distance.

In Mountainside, the goal of GPS Services is to work with families, other care providers, and the community to ensure that seniors receive services that support their health and well-being, maximize functionality, decrease isolation and allow them to remain living independently as long as possible.

"We are helping older adults age in place successfully at home," Pat Stelmach, care navigator for GPS at SAGE, said. "Families are grateful that we help create an acceptable plan of care that works for everyone. Older adults steered through GPS have direct access to the thirteen other integrated services at SAGE, too."

To learn more about GPS Services, whether or not you are a resident of Mountainside, please call SAGE Eldercare at908-273-5550 or visit www.sageeldercare.org.